Catalan cava producer Freixenet to lay off 80% of workforce due to drought
MADRID, April 22 (Reuters) -Spanish cava producer Freixenet has presented a plan to temporarily lay off 615 workers, close to 80% of the companies total workforce, due to the drought affecting the Penedes area in Catalonia, it said in a statement on Monday.
Freixenet becomes one of the first companies in Catalonia to present a temporary layoff plan, which is expected to come into force in May, due to the persistent drought.
As the impact of fossil-fuel driven climate change intensifies across southern Europe, Spain's Mediterranean of Catalonia, home region to Freixenet, is enduring its worst drought on record.
Under Spain's ERTE law, companies that are facing exceptional circumstances can temporarily lay off employees by suspending workers' contracts. The company did not specify when workers would be allowed to return to work, and the law does not have a set time frame for when companies should re-hire them.
The company said that the implementation of the measures will vary depending on the period of the year and drought conditions.
"The measure, implemented as an exercise of responsibility, is aimed at guaranteeing the viability of the business and preserving employability in order to face external causes and force majeure caused by the severe drought," it said.
Unions representing the workers did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
The layoff plan is an exceptional measure caused by the lack of grapes resulting from the severe drought that has been affecting the sector since 2021, and especially in 2023 in the area of El Penedes, its home area, the cava producer said.
The company has presented the plan to the Catalan labour authorities and submitted it to the workers' unions.
Spain has logged its warmest January since records began in 1961 and last year was the country's second warmest, while a recent study showed parts of the Iberian peninsula were suffering from the driest period in 1,200 years.
Vineyards across Catalonia's renowned Penedes cava-producing region are so parched that the roots of 30-year-old vines have died, leaving shrivelled red and green grapes languishing under the intense sun - to the sector's dismay.
The northeastern region is among the most affected by Spain's long drought.
Scientists have linked scorching temperatures and dry and windy conditions in many parts of the world, including southern Europe, to climate change driven by the fossil fuel industry.
Reporting by Jesús Aguado; editing by Aurora Ellis
Pinakabagong Balita
Disclaimer: Ang mga kabilang sa XM Group ay nagbibigay lang ng serbisyo sa pagpapatupad at pag-access sa aming Online Trading Facility, kung saan pinapahintulutan nito ang pagtingin at/o paggamit sa nilalaman na makikita sa website o sa pamamagitan nito, at walang layuning palitan o palawigin ito, at hindi din ito papalitan o papalawigin. Ang naturang pag-access at paggamit ay palaging alinsunod sa: (i) Mga Tuntunin at Kundisyon; (ii) Mga Babala sa Risk; at (iii) Kabuuang Disclaimer. Kaya naman ang naturang nilalaman ay ituturing na pangkalahatang impormasyon lamang. Mangyaring isaalang-alang na ang mga nilalaman ng aming Online Trading Facility ay hindi paglikom, o alok, para magsagawa ng anumang transaksyon sa mga pinansyal na market. Ang pag-trade sa alinmang pinansyal na market ay nagtataglay ng mataas na lebel ng risk sa iyong kapital.
Lahat ng materyales na nakalathala sa aming Online Trading Facility ay nakalaan para sa layuning edukasyonal/pang-impormasyon lamang at hindi naglalaman – at hindi dapat ituring bilang naglalaman – ng payo at rekomendasyon na pangpinansyal, tungkol sa buwis sa pag-i-invest, o pang-trade, o tala ng aming presyo sa pag-trade, o alok para sa, o paglikom ng, transaksyon sa alinmang pinansyal na instrument o hindi ginustong pinansyal na promosyon.
Sa anumang nilalaman na galing sa ikatlong partido, pati na ang mga nilalaman na inihanda ng XM, ang mga naturang opinyon, balita, pananaliksik, pag-analisa, presyo, ibang impormasyon o link sa ibang mga site na makikita sa website na ito ay ibibigay tulad ng nandoon, bilang pangkalahatang komentaryo sa market at hindi ito nagtataglay ng payo sa pag-i-invest. Kung ang alinmang nilalaman nito ay itinuring bilang pananaliksik sa pag-i-invest, kailangan mong isaalang-alang at tanggapin na hindi ito inilaan at inihanda alinsunod sa mga legal na pangangailangan na idinisenyo para maisulong ang pagsasarili ng pananaliksik sa pag-i-invest, at dahil dito ituturing ito na komunikasyon sa marketing sa ilalim ng mga kaugnay na batas at regulasyon. Mangyaring siguruhin na nabasa at naintindihan mo ang aming Notipikasyon sa Hindi Independyenteng Pananaliksik sa Pag-i-invest at Babala sa Risk na may kinalaman sa impormasyong nakalagay sa itaas, na maa-access dito.
